On Tuesday, the residents of Pitt Meadows had the opportunity to voice their questions and concerns regarding the Harris Road underpass project and the sudden revelation that the City of Pitt Meadows would need to contribute nearly $50 million to help close the project funding gap.
READ MORE: Pitt Meadows underpass becomes 3 times as expensive, with $50 million requested from city
Even before the first speaker reached the podium, city staff revealed that there had been 168 submissions through the Have Your Say platform, 108 of which voiced opposition to the city funding the underpass.
In response to some suggestions that the city use the budget for the proposed independent RCMP detachment for the underpass project, Justin Hart, manager of major projects for the city, explained that even exploring this possibility wouldn’t solve the funding issue.
“This isn’t an either/or situation,” said Hart. “The expected costs for the RCMP detachment would not cover even half of the port authority’s requested funding contribution for the underpass.”
Approximately $1 million has already been invested into furthering the RCMP de-integration in Pitt Meadows, with the total project budget being $20 million, explained Hart.
RELATED: Pitt Meadows can’t afford new RCMP detachment and underpass
Another possible solution, which was brought forward by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority at the March 28 council meeting, was to transition the project into an overpass instead of an underpass.
However, city staff also shot back against this idea, with Hart saying that there were multiple issues with switching to an overpass.
“The estimate from the overpass was taken from a very preliminary design and therefore, there are many unknowns associated with that, which could increase costs as more details are fleshed out,” he said.
Hart also clarified that CP Rail requires seven metres of clearance over its track, and with the added height of the overpass materials and sidewalk railings, the entire structure would likely be nine and a half to 10m tall, which he said would be a considerable height next to the Keystone condo complex, which stands only 13m in height.
Once the questions and comments period began, a clear pattern emerged amongst the speakers.
“We have been a victim of the old bait and switch,” said Pitt Meadows resident Heather Emmett.
“We played nice in the sandbox for five years and now they [CP Rail and the port authority] are throwing sand in our face,” agreed Pitt Meadows resident Tracey Meaden. “I’m for the underpass, but not at all for the fact that Pitt Meadows is now on the hook for the 25 per cent.”
When longtime resident Sharon Martin got to the mic, she had one simple concern.
“How on Earth are we going to afford all of this?” asked Martin. “I’m afraid for myself as a senior living in Pitt Meadows for 20 years. I’m extremely concerned with how much my taxes are going to go up.”
In response, Pitt Meadows CAO Mark Roberts broke down what the approximate cost passed on to residents would be given the current interest rates.
“It’s estimated that it would be approximately $300 annually, and assuming that it’s over a 30-year debt period, that would equate to about $9,000 for the average single-family home,” said Roberts.
Another Pitt Meadows resident suggested the idea of looking at using Allen Way as a possible road to help alleviate some of these issues, which Mayor Nicole MacDonald explained would come with its own set of issues.
“Allen Way has been looked at, but the issue with that becomes it would be strictly city funding the entire project because it’s not a benefit to CP in terms of their operations,” said Mayor MacDonald.
RELATED: New CP Rail still coming to Pitt Meadows, despite Harris Road underpass troubles
The mayor further clarified that the city was at a crossroads right now and the decisions they make in the next few days will have a major financial impact on each and every resident.
“If we decided to move forward and council says we believe in this project and we’re taking it to the public, we will then have to put a non-refundable deposit of $5 million down,” said MacDonald. “Currently, there is no cost to the city.”
“When the PPA [Project Partnering Agreement] was signed, there was a $2 million [fee] if the City of Pitt Meadows was to withdraw. But we are in compliance and support of the MOU [Memorandum of Understanding] and the PPA to date. We are not withdrawing as per the conditions of those agreements because in those agreements we were not a funding partner.”
The city council will continue to read through the questions and comments submitted to them and will respond to both the residents and the port authority on April 18 as to whether or not the city will go forward with the Harris Road underpass project.
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